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4 8 8 . WAT E R : A S H A R E D R ES P O N S I B I L I TY
8. Lake Titicaca Basin
The Lake Titicaca Basin is composed of four major basins: Lake
Titicaca, Desaguadero River, Lake Poopó and Coipasa Salt Lake. These
four basins form the TDPS System, the main element being Lake
Titicaca, the largest lake in South America and the highest navigable
lake in the world. The TDPS System stretches approximately 140,000
km2 and is located between 3,600 and 4,500 m.a.s.l.
Titicaca
basin
◆
◆
Poverty and conflict: Persistent challenges
▲
The initial case study report presented in WWDR1 (see WWDR1 case
study) concluded that poverty was the most critical social problem in
the TDPS system, affecting both rural and urban populations and
undermining attempts to implement solutions to various problems.
Unfortunately, in the past three years, no significant progress has been
made to improve the situation.
Section 5: SHARING RESPONSIBILITIES
These events can be linked to structural poverty (see WWDR1 for
more information), which stems from the combination of several socioeconomic factors. Some of these factors are land property fragmentation
(causing the under-utilization of land resources and thus low
productivity) and indigenous cultural patterns leading to social exclusion.
The effects of these factors are more pronounced in rural areas.
Consequently, migration to urban settlements becomes the only choice
for the rural poor, who hope to find better living conditions and mostly
end up in crowded degraded districts. These migrants, the inhabitants
of the Bolivian urban TDPS System, were the real actors of the social
upheaval that took place in October 2003.
The impact of climate change on glaciers
During dry seasons, glaciers are the main source of drinking and irrigation
water for many urban dwellers and farmers living in Peru and Bolivia. However,
the climate variability and associated changes in ambient temperatures have
started affecting the tropical glaciers of the region. The loss in volume of these
unique tropical glaciers is alarming, and continuing melting trends will translate
Desaguadero
basin
▲
▲
Poópoa
basin
Coipasa
basin
◆
In January 2005, the inhabitants of El Alto, Bolivia (located near La Paz),
the main city of the TDPS System with 800,000 inhabitants (Instituto
Nacional de Estadistica, 2005), protested the contract with Aguas del
Illimani (Waters of Illimani), a subsidiary of French Suez Lyonnaisse des
Eaux that was running a thirty-year concession for the water and sewage
services in La Paz and El Alto. A week of civil disturbances finally came to
an end with the resignation of the Constitutional President of Bolivia and
the government’s unilateral decision to end the water concession with
Aguas del Illimani. The political transitions occurring in some Latin
American countries since the 1980s have further added to the complexity
of finding a solution to poverty. Peru was among the first Latin American
countries to shift to a democratic regime. However, an increasingly
authoritarian regime led to public outrage and caused the president
to flee the country in 2000.
EL ALTO-LA PAZ
◆
▲
▲
Map 14.9: Overview of the Lake Titicaca Basin
Source: Prepared for the World Water Assessment Programme by AFDEC, 2006.
into drought for thousands of people. Figure 14.1 illustrates the impact of
climate change on the availability of water resources in the TDPS System.
The consequences of glacial melting for local populations are serious. Acting
as reservoirs, glaciers regulate stream flow and diminish seasonal discharge
variation. This effect is vital, especially between September and November,
when ice melting (and water demand) is at its maximum. Discharges in
glacier basins are important during those months, since the flows of other
rivers in the Altiplano Basins reach minimum levels.
To counterbalance the negative effects of glacial melting, more dams and
reservoirs will have to be constructed, increasing the cost of the water supply
to Andean cities. It can be expected that the additional cost will be
transferred to urban users by means of tariff increases, particularly in El Alto
and La Paz, where the urban water supply is under private administration.
Judging from recent social movements, any tariff increase would likely
trigger potential conflicts, particularly in the poorest areas of El Alto.
The additional costs of flow regulation in glacier basins could also be hard
to afford for small and medium-sized irrigation systems, rendering rural
poor more vulnerable.
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C A S E STU D I ES . 4 8 9
9. Mali
Figure 14.1: Areal and volumetric variation of the Chacaltaya Glacier
25
6000
Area
Volume
4000
15
3000
10
2000
5
1000
0
1940
Volume(million m3)
5000
20
Area(ha)
Poverty remains the underlying cause of many social problems
experienced by both rural and urban populations. Since the first WWAP
case study was conducted in 2003, there has unfortunately been no
improvement in living conditions. The poor are still struggling to meet
the most basic of food and water needs. The expectation of better living
conditions tempts young people to migrate to the cities; however, most
of these people find themselves living in degraded crowded informal
settlements, which lack even the most basic of utilities. The poor, even
if they have physical access to water and health services, can only
marginally take advantage of them due to poverty. In this context, the
water-related problems of basin countries cannot be isolated; they must
be addressed within the greater social framework. Better management
of these countries’ land, water and gas resources is the only means to
break the vicious circle of poverty.
0
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
The data collected in the TDPS System shows the receding trend of tropical glaciers. Between
1991 and 2003, Zongo and Chacaltaya glaciers suffered both areal and volumetric losses. In
fact, the accumulated mass balance, expressed as water depth, was -11.02 m for Zongo and 15.06 m for Chacaltaya. Chacaltaya glacier, a small glacier located at a medium altitude, lost
97 percent of its mass between 1960 and 2003 and is expected to disappear completely by
2010. This figure clearly shows that the receding trend started in the 1960s and has
accelerated in the last twenty years.
◆
Conclusion
◆
Despite its northern desert, Mali has a number of important water
resources. Two major rivers – the Niger River and the Senegal River –
run through Mali. These two rivers constitute the majority of Mali’s
perennial surface water resources, providing the country with 56 billion
m3 of water. Important non-perennial surface waters are estimated at a
volume 15 billion m3. Mali also has seventeen large lakes situated near
◆
●
◆
Three climatic groups can be discerned: arid desert in the northern
region, arid to semi-arid in the centre and savannah in the south.
The Sahara region, in the northwest tip of Mali, covers up to 57 percent
of the national territory with an arid and semi-arid desert climate (rainfall
usually does not exceed 200 mm per year). At its centre, the country’s
climate is characterized by the Sahel, encompassing about 18 percent
of the land. The humid rainy season (June to October) usually brings
between 200 and 700 mm of rainfall per year. The Niger River is an
important part of this region, as the annual flooding of the river makes
the surrounding land fertile for agricultural production. In the southern
region of Mali, the rainy season generally brings over 1,200 mm of rain
per year. This region and climate covers approximately 25 percent of
the country. It is by far the most fertile area, where the majority of the
population resides and where most agricultural activities take place.
◆
Located in the heart of western Africa, Mali has a surface area of
1,241,000 km2, over 50 percent of which is located in the Sahara
Desert. More than 1,000 km away from the sea, the country is
completely landlocked. Mali’s location means that the country’s
climate can sometimes be quite unpredictable: years of abundant
rainfall and years of extreme drought.
■
◆
Map 14.10: Overview of the river basins in Mali
Source: Prepared for the World Water Assessment Programme by AFDEC, 2006.
the Niger River, and renewable groundwater resources from aquifers have
been assessed at 66 billion m3. The volume of renewable water resources
per capita per year is 10,000 m3.
However, these water resources are geographically dispersed and not
always available when needed, greatly limiting their exploitation and
economic development: overall, only 0.2 percent of Mali’s potential
water resources is put into use. Furthermore, the country has had many
droughts in the past, compounding problems of water shortage issues.